If you have recently bought a router table or other immovable power tools, you will recognize that your new possession doesn’t come with every desirable and related equipment imaginable in the container already. Don’t think you’re cheated. By agreement, the router table comes with essential pieces of equipment to perform the basic functions of routing safely, following typical working conditions.
After working a few times, most owners realize that some things in the router table accessories rarely coming standard are hard for doing without. Luckily, the router table add-ons most woodworkers regard as absolutely necessary things are inexpensive. Some of the highest qualities are affordable to purchase readymade, or very easy to be made without many difficulties in the workshop. The feather board is the prime example.
In cases you have not had any opportunity for using a feather board, it’s the most popular member of the router table designed to give the assistance to hold the stock tightly against the router fence or the top, while the stock is cut by the bit. The simplest form of a shop-made feather board is separated from a straight piece about 3 inches to 6 inches wide scrap. If you want to make one by yourself, you simply cut across the main board at about 30 degrees, then you make a number of stopped cuts following the direction to separate ⅛ inch parts of the single grain. The final result must be a number of flexible fingers moving across angled final part of the wood board.
The usage
A feather board really serves two goals.
It gives assistance to hold a stock tightly against the fence or the router top while you feed the stock through the bit. In some cases, it can do a greater job than an operator for keeping the piece on track. The feather board has the only requirement to apply the consistent pressure. There’s no worry about some things like turning hand positions for keeping a stock running, or keeping the proper feed rate. Moreover, the feather board is positioned nearer to the motion than the operator’s finger that should dare to go dangerous situation. That is applying pressure on the place the board is cut in the most effective way while it can overcome problems of the vibration. At the same time, these benefits make the feather board absolutely necessary with the router table for very fine edge forming, rabbeting and grooving operations.
Using the feather board supports safety benefits. When it is placed to apply the light pressure, it allows the stock to easily move in the way of cutting while preventing movement backward. You should notify that the feather board isn’t a renewal for the anti-kickback stock now coming usual with most router tables, it provides the significant kickback protection.
Should you create the own feather board, or purchase one ready-made?
- The first one is an achievable selection: a feather board made by yourself can operate as well as a model bought from the store, and they are nearly cost-free. However, as most things, you should think of two tradeoffs: a feather board isn’t especially difficult to form, but it doesn’t make itself. Depending on how much pleasure you get from cutting jigs, and how much time you spend for the shoe, you can decide the selection to make the own one brings more benefits than the cost of a model bought from the store.
- However, your own feather board is less friendly for the user than varieties of the store. If you intend to simply fix your own in place, remember to hold it in place with the slight pressure. If you hold it very tightly, there are some difficulties for keeping it in place.
It might be difficult for the feather board to fix a stock in place on the router table top that isn’t designed for making the process convenient and easy. It’s the fact that the feather board helps avoid clamping problems. The bar expands to fasten the feather board tightly into a measure of the miter slot about ¾ inch x ⅜ inch and secure simultaneously its position, with the move of two knobs.
The quantity
Occasionally, one feather board is not always enough and a router table requires stacked feather boards. If you are feeding a stock vertically into the constant direction on the fence – as in cases of trimming raised panels – you need two feather boards set up on the table top near the fence. The second one makes sure the whole surface of the board will be against on the fence, but not only a bottom edge.
If you have a router table in your workshop, you should get feather boards for the good work. They help to keep a stock tightly in place and protect yourself from the kickback problems of the stock. A feather board is inexpensive so you should have a try to know its advantages for your woodwork.
